Color Bars
by Sleeping In
Summary: A discussion of colors, meanings, and frightening lifesize puppets from childhood. A short glimpse at Hachi and Nobu's romance before the downfall.


**Color Bars**  
by: _Sleeping In_

* * *

_he says he reckons i'm a watercolour stain_  
**tori amos**, "father lucifer"

* * *

**H**achi laid in his arms after a vigorous workout of the sexual variety. He had a pleased look in his eyes, one that was constantly there whenever Hachi ended up in his arms. Who wouldn't smile when the love of your life chooses you instead of the longhaired rock star? Nobu let out a small laugh at the thought. 

The girl against his chest mumbled something and Nobu couldn't make out the syllables. He rubbed her head asking while he did so, "What was that you said; I didn't catch it. It might help if you talked to my face and not my chest." Hachi giggled in her signature way and wiggled so she was lying on top of Nobu completely. She twirled a strand of hair in a loving caress and sighed in happiness. This is what she had been looking for.

"I was just asking what your favorite color was."

Nobu looked at her strangely. "Isn't that sorta--well, juvenile?" Hachi hmphed at his reply and stuck her tongue out at him in retaliation. Nobu tickled her bare sides and she wiggled in a way that made him go cross-eyed. She shrieked when he flipped them both so she was on the bottom again. He pressed his nose against her hair and made a show of licking her face causing Hachi to shout in a mixture of distaste and amusement. Once they settled down and Nobu rested his head on her chest, Hachi repeated her question.

Nobu would have shrugged had he the energy, but he didn't so he just decided to answer her question. After all, the path of least resistance worked well most of the time.

"I dunno. I like most colors, 'cept maroon. That's a freaky color."

Hachi snickered lightly, "What's so scary about maroon? It's pretty!"

Nobu rose up to look her in the face to express his displeasure with the color. "It's an evil color! It's tricky and cruel and-and--" He stopped when Hachi's mirth spilled forth from her lips and her body shook with spasms. "What, did a big, bad monster dress in maroon when you were a kid? Is this where your fear stems from?" she teased him mercilessly. Nobu fell back against her chest and now it was her turn to not understand her boyfriend. She soothed down his hair in a loving gesture and shushed him motheringly. She questioned him softly, "What was that sweetie? I couldn't understand you." Nobu lifted his head, not enough so she could see his face but so his words wouldn't be smothered.

"Barney."

Hachi sent him a confused look. "What about Barney?" Nobu still didn't look up as he answered her, "I was scared of Barney."

He frowned at his girlfriend's roar of laughter after his proclamation. "It's not funny," he mewled, "my cousin played this nasty trick on me. He told me that Barney would come out and eat me if I didn't steal this key chain for him! I was really scared he would! I mean look at him, he's huge! And there's always new kids each show! And-And--" He probably would have continued his tirade if it wasn't for Hachi's fingers on his lips silencing him. He questioned her with his eyes and she sent him his favorite little smile that always sent his heart shuddering in his chest.

"It's okay. I was scared of Big Bird;" Nobu sent her an incredulous look.

"Big Bird? That yellow walking puppet? How can you be scared of him? He wasn't scaring at all! Why--"

"I'll have you know he is very frightening to a young gullible child! He-"

Their voices rose in scale as they argued which of the childhood life-size puppets were scarier when there was a loud thud against the wall, as if something (possibly a combat boot) had been thrown at the wall. \  
The couple froze, looked at each other simultaneously, and both let out an uproar of hilarity at the situation and their heated argument. Once they calmed down enough to speak, Nobu voiced his thoughts, "Well if Hachi doesn't like the color yellow, what does she like? Pink maybe? Or the customary blue? What is it then?" Hachi smiled brightly. "I don't have a favorite color," she told him simply, "there's so many colors in the world. One day I like orange then the next it's teal. I love all colors."

She situated herself against his body and continued her speech, "When I was trying to get into art school; it wasn't the art part that attracted me but rather how an artist could use colors to express something bigger than myself or anyone else."

"I thought you went to art school to be with Junko?"

Hachi frowned, "That was another reason. Actually, you're the first person I told that reason to. I thought that if I told someone about my thoughts then they would laugh or worse they wouldn't believe me cause they think I'm shallow or something. I know I'm shallow most of the time, but I do have my moments of depth." Hachi had a dark look on her face now, something Nobu couldn't stand to see. He turned so they were facing each other on their sides. He thread some strands of her hair through his fingers and opened himself up to her as she had done to him, "I once told Nana I didn't want to play to anyone else's singing (more than once, now that I think about it) and I was telling the truth. You see, I find that when I'm listening to music on the radio or something, I don't believe what they're singing. Like the singer doesn't know what they're talking about. I've always felt that, since I was a kid even. One of my reasons for liking the Sex Pistols was because you couldn't hear or understand Johnny Rotten. It was all about the music with them. None of this bullshit you hear on the radio that everyone sings everyday.

"The reason I love Nana's singing so much is because I believe her. I don't know why I do; it's just a fact of life. She can sing about something I know, for a fact, that she knows next to zero about and I'll believe her. Heh, this sounds really lame now that I say it, but it's how I feel."

Hachi was smiling widely at his admission. She felt closer to him than before, like there was something new that bonded them together besides feelings. They had history now.

Hachi opened her mouth to speak, but was cut off when there was a shout from the living room. It seemed that her roommate had cooked some food and wanted them to come eat with her and her boyfriend. Hachi laughed and the seriousness of the mood disappeared to be replaced by a jovial sort of energy. Nobu and Hachi tried to detangle themselves from the sheets and ended up on the floor instead. Shaking and falling over themselves in laughter, the lovers dressed each other and made it out of Hachi's room quickly.

Ren was lounging in his customary spot at the table by the window on Nana's side and Nana was placing soup in bowls for the group to eat. It seemed she made miso soup again. When Nana noticed the couple, she made a smart-ass comment about noises and soundproofing the room that left Nobu and Hachi blushing profusely while Ren snickered to himself in his corner. They settled into their places and indulged themselves with Nana's always-too-salty-but still-good miso soup.

They were content that night, surrounded by comfort and familiarity.


End file.
